Field of the Disclosed Subject Matter
The disclosed subject matter relates to a system for a composite closure compartment. Particularly, the present disclosed subject matter is directed to a composite battery enclosure.
Description of Related Art
A variety of structures for battery enclosures are known that are self-supporting and are structurally separate from the balance of the vehicle system. This results in added mass for the entire system and thus reduced economy (increasing manufacturing costs) and lower performance (higher weight decreases range of operation between charges or lower fuel economy in a hybrid).
The large mass of batteries typically requires significant material to provide the stiffness and strength to retain the battery or batteries within the vehicle system. Similarly, the battery enclosure of conventional designs requires significant reinforcement to prevent intrusion of objects in the event of a vehicle crash. The structural requirements for the vehicle and the battery enclosure have been traditionally separated whereby the battery enclosure becomes purely parasitic mass and redundant to the performance of the vehicle.
Examples of conventional battery enclosures are provided in the following publications, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety: U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,286,743, 8,393,427, 8,833,499, 5,620,057, 7,323,272, 8,115,450, 8,210,301, 8,875,828, 9,331,321; and U.S. Patent Application Publication Numbers 20100136402, 20120103714, 2015079454 and 2015318525.
The presently disclosed subject matter provides a new innovative solution for the storage, protection and use of batteries for hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric vehicle applications. The invention disclosure fully describes the unique and innovative structural approach to integrating the battery enclosure with the vehicle body in white and/or vehicle chassis. The presently disclosed subject matter solves many of the packaging challenges associated with separate battery enclosures that must exist within the space available of the conventional vehicle design where crash protection is engineered independent of the bolted on battery enclosure. Moreover, the system and structures of the presently disclosed battery enclosure are applicable in hybrid, plug-in hybrid and plug-in electric passenger vehicles for transportation as well as other mass transportation systems (e.g., buses, shuttles and rail cars).